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Tag: convert

  • Kisah Bagaimana Muhammad Ali Peluk Islam

    Kisah Bagaimana Muhammad Ali Peluk Islam

    Sukan tinju dunia dikejutkan dengan berita kehilangan seorang lagenda apabila Muhammad Ali disahkan meninggal dunia, 4 Jun 2016.

    Ali yang dilahirkan pada 17 Januari 1942 di Louisville, Kentucky, Amerika Syarikat menghembuskan nafasnya pada usia 73 tahun, dipercayai kerana menghidap masalah pernafasan.

    Beliau yang pernah menjadi peninju juara heavyweight dunia sebanyak tiga kali sememangnya merupakan salah seorang tokoh sukan terbesar pada abad ke-20.

    Dalam namanya sedang meningkat naik, Ali tiba-tiba mengejutkan dunia apabila memilih untuk memeluk agama Islam dan menukar nama asalnya, Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr, pada tahun 1964.

    Pengumuman pertukaran agamanya itu didedahkan kepada umum buat pertama kali di arena gelanggang selepas Ali berjaya menjuarai heavyweight dunia menumpaskan Sonny Liston.

    Petukaran agamanya itu juga membuatkan ada yang menggelarkannya sebagai ‘Black Muslim’.

    Ali yang awal merupakan mualaf ketika itu dikatakan mempunyai pegangan yang berubah-ubah terhadap Islam.

    Namun, selepas itu Ali mula mendekati ajaran Islam dengan menyertai Nation of Islam, sebelum mengambil keputusan berada dalam aliran Islam Sunni pada tahun 1975, kemudian kepada mazhab Sufi pada tahun 2005.

    Sementara itu, ramai peminatnya percaya Ali memeluk Islam ekoran pengaruh rakan baiknya yang dikenali Malcolm X.

    Malah, ada sumber yang memberitahu, lagenda itu menerima hidayah ketika menemani rakannya mendengar ceramah ajaran Islam.

    Keyakinan Ali terhadap Islam semakin utuh apabila beliau merasakan agama itu tidak membezakan warna kulit, etnik, kekayaan dan semuanya sama di mata Allah SWT.

    Setelah pertukaran agamanya, Ali yang popular dengan gelaran ‘The Greatest’ meminta orang ramai tidak lagi memanggilnya sedemikian kerana mahu bersederhana seperti yang dituntut oleh ajaran Islam.

    Sepanjang hayat, Ali sememangnya cukup terkenal dengan suara lantangnya demi mempertahankan isu-isu kaum, agama dan politik.

    Awal Disember lalu, Ali sekali lagi memainkan peranannya menegakkan hak Islam apabila menyelar pendirian calon presiden Amerika Syarikat, Donald Trump yang mahu menghentikan imigrasi umat Islam ke negara itu.

    “Saya seorang Muslim dan tidak ada orang Islam mahu membunuh orang yang tidak bersalah di Paris, San Bernardino, atau di mana sahaja di dunia. Penganut Islam yang sebenar tahu bahawa keganasan yang kejam bertentangan dengan ajaran agama Islam,” ujarnya.

    Sesungguhnya, insan bernama Muhammad Ali ini sukar dicari ganti dan akan kekal diingatan setiap peminatnya.

    Semoga roh Muhammad Ali berada dalam kalangan orang-orang yang soleh. Al-Fatihah.

    Sumber: http://www.mynewshub.cc/2016/06/04/ini-kisah-bagaimana-muhammad-ali-masuk-islam/

     

    Source: www.indahnyaislam.my

  • Australian Journalist Converted To Islam, Finds Rest And Peace In The Religion

    Australian Journalist Converted To Islam, Finds Rest And Peace In The Religion

    BY SARAH PRICE

    Islamist. Jihadist. ISIS. Terrorist. Women banned from driving in Saudi Arabia. Burqa. 9/11… For a word that means ‘peaceful submission to God’, Islam is a religion that is connected to some pretty negative connotations and often seen in the media for all the wrong reasons. So, why would an educated, independent and well-travelled young Australian woman decide to convert to a religion widely considered ‘backwards’?

    I get confused looks at my fair skin and light eyes. Some Australians ask what country I’m from, and get shocked to hear I’m Australian. Australian AND Muslim? The combination is unthinkable to some.

    Converting to Islam hasn’t been easy. I’ve been called names, been scrutinized, rejected and fired from jobs, lost friends and had a really difficult time with my family accepting the changes in my life. Despite the harsh and rude comments about my change in faith (including how some assume I converted for a man), I’ve also had people come up to me and ask me why. It’s a question I’m happy to answer. My conversion to Islam was down to three main factors. This is my story and the story of the journey that led me over the course of two years to where I am now.
    MALAYSIA

    Traveling to Malaysia was definitely the foundation for my conversion to Islam. I went there after deciding on a whim to go on student exchange, not imagining what a crazy adventure I had set myself up for. It got me out of my comfort zone and exposed to things I had never seen as a small town Australian girl from Gippsland.

    Before Malaysia, I knew nothing about Islam. I had never met a Muslim (to my knowledge) and I always thought of Muslims as wearing heavy black garments somewhere in the Middle East, far, far away from ‘civilisation’. I thought Muslim women were oppressed. That they couldn’t go anywhere without their husbands, that they couldn’t have careers, and had to wear black all the time.

    My image of Islam was shattered when I went to Malaysia. I found myself becoming curious about the pretty South-East Asian Muslim girls with their colourful hijabs and clothes. I made many Muslim friends who went to university and had jobs. Some wore veils and others didn’t. They all seemed quite content and loved their religion and Islam quickly became a religion I wanted to learn more about.

    My eyes and mind were opened, when, as a journalism student, I did an article about Muslim women’s rights. That was the beginning of everything. My mind was suddenly bursting with knowledge about Islam and the fact that women had many rights in Islam! Muslim women were legally given rights (including divorce, land rights, monetary rights, the right to choose who to marry, etc) in the Qur’an and Hadiths hundreds of years before Western women won the same rights.

    The first time I stepped into a mosque in Malaysia, I felt an immediate sense of calm and peace. The strong yet humble cry of the call to prayer invoked feelings in me I never felt before. When I first bowed my head toward the Ka’ba, I felt home in my heart. I didn’t convert to Islam in Malaysia – I did that over a year later – but it introduced me in a beautiful way to Islam and to the Oneness of God.

    CHRISTIANITY

    I was a very staunch Christian before converting to Islam. My life as a Christian was a focal point of my faith journey; without it I would not be a Muslim and it was my love for Jesus (peace be upon him) that actually led me to Islam.

    Christianity is actually the closest religion to Islam, not only theologically but also historically. There are many misconceptions about what Islam teaches about Christianity. To begin, the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) wrote a letter regarding how Muslims should treat Christians. We are to treat Christians with respect – even if a Muslim man is married to a Christian woman, she cannot be stopped from praying in her place of worship.

    Christians and Jews are commonly referred to as ‘People of the Book’ in Islam, because we all have the same Abrahamic roots. Jesus’ (pbuh) name is actually mentioned more times in the Qur’an than the Prophet Muhammad’s (pbuh). Muslims still believe in the virgin birth and places importance on Mary (may Allah be pleased with her). Jesus is an important figure and you cannot be a Muslim without believing in the life and work of Jesus (pbuh).

    The only difference between Christians and Muslims is that we take Jesus (pbuh) to be a prophet and not to be worshipped alongside God. Islam teaches the Oneness of God, and to worship Allah (swt) alone and we believe that Jesus (pbuh) taught this himself. The term ‘Allah’, by the way, is the Arabic word for ‘God’ and is not just an Islamic term. Arab Christians also call God ‘Allah’.

    I love most aspects of Christianity. I love how it teaches compassion, mercy, love and all the good things we human beings should aspire to be. It’s wonderful that many churches are so active in the community and want to do good things in society and help others.

    After returning to Australia from Malaysia I felt like something was missing. I researched key aspects and foundations of Christianity. I researched what Paul taught, what various historical leaders implemented after the death of Christ and I read my Bible inside out.

    I researched what has been taken out of the Bible, what has been put in and the various contradictions and solid truths of the Bible. There are similarities between the Qur’an and the Bible. For me, the Qur’an answered many questions I had about my Christian faith for a long time. I could find no fault, no contradictions in the Qur’an. I listened to debates between world-renowned Biblical and Qur’anic scholars, with the Qur’an making more sense to me every time.

    However, even when I found Islam to be the truth for me, it was very hard for me to actually leave Christianity. Religion has always been the most important thing in my life, and I wanted to make sure I was converting to Islam with all my heart and for all the right reasons. Converting to Islam meant I had certain obligations – praying at least five times a day, giving more to charity, wearing more modest clothing (a choice that I gradually implemented in my life) and give up drinking (drinking is forbidden in Islam).

    This is a mammoth change; as much as I didn’t want to leave the safe haven of the church, I also knew I had to follow my heart to what I believe whole-heartedly is complete truth. I didn’t see converting to Islam as so drastically different to Christianity however; I saw it more as an update of my faith, for many reasons.

    Christianity taught me to love God. It taught me humility, it taught me to love others, and it taught me a lot about Jesus (pbuh). I would not be who I am if I wasn’t once a Christian.

    JOURNALISM

    The best part of being a journalist is being able to make some change in the world; to give people a voice, to learn about human beings and the world around me. Being a journalist led me to learn about Islam.

    Interviewing U.N. Person of the Year, passionate leader of SIS (Sisters in Islam), writer and strong advocate for women’s rights Marina Mahathir shaped my view of Muslim women’s rights and of Islam itself. I still remember how sweaty my palms were when I interviewed her. A million thoughts were rushing through my head. ‘Am I good enough?’ ‘Am I really cut out for journalism?’ This was my first interview with someone quite famous.

    As soon as I met Marina, her quiet yet assertive nature impressed me and I immediately felt a sense of ease. I knew the interview was an important one, a life-changing one. She answered so many questions I had been asking myself since arriving in Malaysia. Her knowledge was exhilarating and I felt as if I had a newfound understanding of something much bigger and deeper than I ever thought possible.

    “We are all one people on this Earth,” said Marina as we finished the interview. Looking back now, I know that was the most important lesson I had learned thus far. Despite various factors that apparently make us so different –national borders, politics, culture, tribes, heritage, skin colour, race and religion – we all bleed the same and breathe the same air. I think we should all try to remember this daily.

    Becoming a Muslim and incorporating it into my life has not been easy in the slightest. It’s hard, and I learn more every day. People judge me, even Muslims judge me. Being a Muslim has tested my patience more than ever before or ever imagined. But they say the right path is not always the easiest one – and despite how hard it is at times, it also brings an incredible sense of peace in my heart and into my life. I wouldn’t have it any other way. It makes me happy, it makes me cry, and it makes me question a lot of things about society and about the Dunya (this life).

    All I can say is that I find rest with Allah (swt), and no matter what I go through, I know I am never alone every time I make Salat to my Creator. Truly, ‘verily with every hardship comes ease’ (Al-Inshirah 94:6).

    Yes, I am Muslim. I am also Australian, I’m a journalist, and I am also a traveler. Being a Muslim doesn’t change the elements that make up who I am as a person.

    Sarah Price is a Master of Journalism student at Monash University Australia. She has interned in Malaysia and Melbourne.

     

    Source: https://sg.news.yahoo.com

  • I Pray Secretly In Fear Of My Family

    I Pray Secretly In Fear Of My Family

    I am a Muslim revert from the Philippines. I was almost 17 when I reverted to Islam last year during the last day of Ramadan, alhamdullilah. Before I became a Muslim, I had faith issues. I stopped believing in Christianity due to many questions that popped up in my head that nobody could answer. I eventually gave up the idea of religion. I was almost at the edge of being an atheist until I found Islam, Alhamdullilah.

    My family is devout Christian. I can say that my father is really against Islam, so I really have to hide it from them or else something might happen. Eventually, my family (except for my father) confronted me if I became a Muslim because they caught me praying at some occasions while wearing the hijab. I told them that I became a Muslim. They were so upset and told me so many bad things. They threatened me that they will tell my father if I don’t leave Islam. I was very afraid of that time so I told them that I will stop practicing Islam, but it is only to avoid any danger inshaAllah. Alhamdullilah, after what had happened, Allah has helped me to get through it. I only pray secretly as much as I can so they wouldn’t find out that I’m still a Muslim.

    I’ve never been this happy and complete during my jahaliyyah (days of ignorance). Alhamdullilah Islam answered all of my questions. Knowing Allah is such a great honor to me and I couldn’t be more grateful to be one of His servants.

    I am planning to wear the hijab in my university, insha’Allah. I know that this won’t be easy for me as it is my first time to wear it in front of everyone. I will be removing it when I go home, so my family won’t know it. Please keep me in your dua’a (prayer) that I can do it for Allah’s sake.

    May Allah guide my family and the other non-Muslims as well to Islam, Ameen.

     

    Source: http://worldhijabday.com

  • 9 Misconceptions Of A Chinese Muslimah Convert In Singapore

    9 Misconceptions Of A Chinese Muslimah Convert In Singapore

    1. We automatically changed our race when we became Muslim.

    “So you can speak Malay too?”

    “OMG, you can speak Chinese???”

    “I don’t get it… so you’re half-Malay and half-Chinese?”

    “Are you going to change your name to Siti bte…?”

    I’m Chinese, my parents are Chinese, my grandparents are Chinese, and my great-grandparents and great-great-grandparents are Chinese. Becoming a muslim did not suddenly transform one of my ancestors to Malay and neither did it give me a sudden gift to speak Malay out of the blue (although I do wish I had such a gift for languages).

    2. We’re no longer Chinese because we can’t eat pork.

    Yes I get it that most of our Chinese dishes have pork in them. But linking the fact that we no longer eat pork to losing our ‘chinese-ness’ is akin to saying that our ‘chinese DNA’ is somehow located in a pig. Thanks but no thanks.

    By the way, chicken bak kut teh is just as nice. So is deng deng (the chicken version of bakkwa).

    3. We definitely converted because of our muslim partner/fiance/husband.

    Well I don’t blame you if you think that way, because it is quite a common case where we were introduced to Islam through them. BUT it does not mean we lack a brain and the ability to think for ourselves, because after all, we were not forced to convert. Contrary to popular belief, many of us actually do go to read up on Islam before we actually took the step to convert. Please do NOT, I repeat, DO NOT start preaching to us as if we did not consider all the ‘repercussions’ of our conversion. We do appreciate the concern, but at the same time we do not wish for you to look… uninformed.

    I also apologize beforehand if you meet me and make such an assumption- It is inevitable that I might roll my eyes uncontrollably. It’s not directed at you, just at the fact that it has happened virtually EVERY SINGLE TIME I tell someone I am muslim.

    4. We are okay with polygamy since our husbands are allowed to marry up to 4 wives.

    I get this a LOT. Frankly I’m really tired of this question, because I’m getting attacked front left right and back with it. Islam is the ONLY religion to dictate that the men should marry just one, if he cannot see himself to be just to more than one wife. Plus what our husbands choose to do will not affect you in any way. It’s between them and us.

    Having said this, won’t you ask yourself why we have chosen to subjugate ourselves to Islam despite such obligations? Doesn’t it say so much more about the authenticity of the message of Islam?

    5. Women are oppressed in Islam! We’ll have to stay in the kitchen and serve tea forever.

    How about, men are oppressed in Islam because they have to slog and earn money to provide for their wives while their wives get to earn their keep? Just because men and women have different roles does not mean one is superior over the other. And we women definitely do not feel at all oppressed one little bit, so stop harping over it. We are not brainwashed, nor have we been possessed to become meek, subservient wives.

    6. Once you’re in, you can’t get out. They’ll punish you. That’s why there’re so few people converting out of Islam.

    No, you’ll just get yourself a lengthy counseling session. Because this is Singapore, not ISIS.

    Many times though, there is still a social stigma linked to converting (as do all other religions), especially prevalent amongst the older, more traditional generation. But for us converts whose parents and relatives mostly do not share our joy in us becoming muslim, converting out of it is easy-peasy, as we’d be seen as going back to ‘normal’. But- Nauzubillah- I am shivering at the thought that I was this close to continue being non-muslim, and the thought of ever converting out of Islam. I pray I die a Muslim, insha’Allah!!

    7. We believe non-muslims go to hell.

    Actually, we’d be the ones to go to hell for ever assuming that about you. Go read thispost, it’ll give you a better picture.

    8. We might become terrorists one day.

    Yeah, the probability is as high as you becoming one, too. It’s the same thing when the word ‘expat’ is given only to you if you’re caucasian, and ‘immigrant’ if you’re Asian, or African, or Indian etc. A crazy christian terrorist, therefore, will be called a ‘crazy man’, whereas the word ‘terrorist’ will only be reserved for muslims. Stop following mainstream media and open your eyes to the rest of the terrorist attacks by other non-muslim groups that these propogandic media conveniently leaves out.

    9. We all lost our minds.

    Yeah, like suddenly, we became dumb and unable to make rational decisions, because of the fact that we did not consider all the points, especially those mentioned earlier. We get people telling us we’re stupid, looking at us piteously because we can no longer show off our hair and have to wear short dresses and skirts. We get people trying to advise us based on the misconceptions mentioned above (seriously I don’t mind well-meaning advice, debates, and intense talks on religion, but do not try to convert me by telling me that Muslim women are not allowed to drive, or something along that line). As much as I believe in your ability to think, so should you respect mine as well.

    So please, the next time you ever do see a Chinese Muslim in Singapore, please do know that we are as Chinese as the (Singaporean) Chinese can be, and as much as we appreciate your concern, we’d rather you see that we’ve chosen Islam for the beauty of the Faith rather than for the unfortunate, screwed-up misconceptions which you hold of it.

    Waleikumsalam (And peace be with you).

     

    Source: https://betweenfaith.wordpress.com

  • Number Of Muslim Converts In France Increased After Charlie Hebdo

    Number Of Muslim Converts In France Increased After Charlie Hebdo

    The number of people accepting Islam in France has increased significantly after the Charlie Hebdo attacks, with imams reporting a growing number of people coming  to take the Shahada at mosques.

    “It makes me want to go to Islam and to show everyone that this is not what Islam is about,” a young Muslim convert to Islam was quoted by RTL Radio a week ago.

    According to the radio station, the Great Mosque of Paris issued 40 reversion certificates to Islam.

    At the same period last year, the mosque gave certificates to 22 only, almost 50 percent of this year’s conversion rate.

    Percentage of converts to Islam in Strasbourg and Aubervilliers was also high, scoring around 30% increase.

    Lyon also followed the same trend with an increase of 20%.

    The imams said they were surprised at first by the increase in the number of new converts.

    Additionally, the diversity of those converts, including a doctor, a school headteacher or a police officer who all crossed the gate of the Grand Mosque to accept Islam.

    A few days after Charlie Hebdo attack, a French business director Isabelle Matic, announced her decision to revert to Islam on her FaceBook account.

    As well as condemning the attackers as unIslamic, French Muslims also called for the criminalisation of insulting religions amid increasing anger around over Charlie Hebdo’s decision to publish new cartoons of Prophet Muhammad (saw).

     

    Source: http://5pillarsuk.com